


Ready.

by TheGrimLlama



Series: supercorp trash team compilation [4]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Angst, F/F, What Did You Expect
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-13
Updated: 2017-03-13
Packaged: 2018-10-03 20:53:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,984
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10257977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGrimLlama/pseuds/TheGrimLlama
Summary: I've looked death in the eye,More than once.Held out my hand,Ready.***Or, that time Lena does a Lena and decides that enough is enough.  Cadmus must be destroyed.





	

_There were sparks._

_They flew,_

_Spewing from our restless hands like magma._

_That should have been the first hint that this would end in disaster._

 

Their relationship was easy.  It started as a mutually beneficial friendship, at least, that was how Kara had explained it to Alex.  Cultivated over late night chats with wine and donuts, over early mornings on the roof of the L-Corp tower, with freshly brewed coffee and warm croissants from the bakery two blocks over.  It was always easy.  

 

The ease of the friendship strained with every new Cadmus attack.  With every foiled attempt on Lena's reputation, every attempt on her life.  The more Kara exposed Lena to that part of her life the harder it became to differentiate which alterego was which.  

 

Lena noticed.  She was a genius, how could she not.  Supergirl, the strong, untouchable demeanour slipping into gentle touches and smiles, too Kara for Lena not to notice.  Then were the nights when Kara would curl into Lena's side, her eyes dull and full of sorrow so complex that Lena could only imagine the kind of things Supergirl had been exposed to that day.  It was nights like these that cemented their relationship into something more than casual work acquaintances.  

 

This Kara was all shadows and secrecy, determined to keep the darkness and sorrow hidden from Lena with a fake smile plastered across her cheeks.  Lena knew nights like these called for affectionate touches and bad jokes.  She knew that Kara needed the contact, and to be honest, she needed it too.  Especially after being glued to the television, watching helplessly as Supergirl was thrown back and forth into buildings, taking hit after hit, only to get back up and do it all over again.   

 

_I've looked death in the eye,_

_More than once._

_Held out my hand,_

_Ready._

 

Kara never explicitly told Lena, she never needed to.  Kara knew that she knew.  It was obvious.  So it wasn't a surprise when Supergirl slipped through the balcony doors of Lena's office, that Lena gently held Kara as she sobbed; her face, a canvas painted with the remnants of her day's beating.   She had meant to head straight to the DEO, not wanting to expose Lena to this part of her job.  She had told Alex that she was on her way.  Her body had other ideas.

 

And so they continued.  Their friendship, more important than any other feelings that Kara or Lena had pushed to the side.  Falling asleep in each other’s arms, waking up to fresh coffee, either brewed in Lena's stupidly expensive coffee machine, or collected from the coffee shop two doors down from Kara's complex.

 

_She was music to her ears,_

_Colour to her eyes._

 

Occasionally Alex and Maggie would join them.  Maggie's smug smirk always present, along with Alex's calculating gaze.

 

Weeks passed, slipping into months, until Lena had been a permanent fixture in Kara's life from over a year.  

 

A year of their lives becoming so blended that it was almost impossible to justify keeping two apartments.  But Lena insisted.  Lillian and Lex were still taking swipes at her, Lex somehow still in contact with his mother from solitary confinement.  She didn't want Kara dragged into that, it was bad enough that Kara took the brunt of Cyborg Superman's attacks on Lena.

 

So when Lena found the breach in L-Corps servers, she knew what needed to be done.  Lillian was always two steps ahead of them, toying with the DEO, her lackeys imbued with Kryptonite using Kara as a punching bag every other day.  Lillian needed to be stopped.

She knew Kara would never agree with her plan.  It was too much of a risk to Lena's safety for Kara to ever let her try.  

 

_Sometimes,_

_to do the right thing,_

_You have to take the hard road._

 

So Lena threw herself into her plan, playing the long con with the cyborg on the other end of the network, letting him slowly but surely infiltrate various aspects of L-Corp, heading him off whenever he delved too deep into anything that might harm Kara, and steering him down false paths.  

 

***

 

Three weeks since the initial breach and Lena's mind was slipping.  The heaviness of her actions weighing down her nights with Kara.  

 

_Sometimes,_

_You need to hurt,_

_Before the sweet release of freedom takes wing._

 

Kara could see the difference.  She knew that there was something bothering Lena by the subtle smile that hid whatever dark thoughts were plaguing her as she whispered, "I'm fine."

Kara knew that look.  She was fluent in it.  She knew heartache when she saw it.

 

_Sometimes,_

_You're not the only one hurting._

 

Part of her knew it was a bad idea to let Lena distract her.  Part of her knew that Lena's hands, her body, her mouth were all a distraction.  But the other part of her didn't care.  Lena was hurting and if this was what she needed, then who was Kara to deny her that?

 

She'd always imagined the warmth of Lena's hands ghosting up her sides, she'd imagined the shivers they'd drag desperately from her body.  She'd imagined the feel of silk sheets clutched beneath teased hands.  And by the way Lena was playing her body, she'd imagined it too.

 

Time slowed, sunset bleeding into sunrise with nothing more than heated gasps and the sting of Lena's lips against her neck.  She should have know then, that this was more than just a distraction.  

 

Maybe it was the softness in Lena's eyes as she hushed Kara to sleep with whispered, I love you's and the soothing brush of fingers through her hair, that dulled her suspicions.  

 

_Sometimes,_

_You need to be the villain._

 

***

 

She'd barely slept, but it had been enough.  Daylight jolting her from slumber with a realisation that the sheets next to her were cold and empty, just like she knew they'd be.  Lena wasn't one to laze the day away.  She stretched, her muscles pulling pleasantly as she reached across the bedside table for her phone.

 

_16 missed calls:  Alex_

_10 missed calls:  Winn_

_12 missed calls:  Maggie_

 

Her heart dropped, plummeting to her feet as her suspicions hit her with full force, without Lena's hands and whispers to soothe them into oblivion.

 "Lena?"  She knew there'd be no answer.  Lena would have heard the phone and woken Kara if she were still in the apartment.  

 

The phone began to vibrate in her hand, heralding another call from her sister.

 "Alex?"

_"Kara, where the hell are you?"_

 

Alex was worried, there was an edge to her voice that Kara couldn't place, "I'm at Lena's.  I just woke up..."

_"Is she there?  Where is Lena...?"_

 

Kara rushed into her supersuit, connecting her phone to her comms, "She's gone?  Probably at work...?"

 

She knew Lena wasn't at work.  She could feel it.

 

_"Kara, I need you here now.  Lena... Just get here."_

 

***

 

The package was due to be delivered any moment now, Lena’s car was speeding down the motorway toward the abandoned naval base that she’d tracked her mother to.  She wished it hadn’t come to this.  But with the knowledge she had, with the amount of synthetic kryptonite that Lex had stashed in this facility?  There was no way she was letting Kara anywhere near it.  She’d held the delivery of the package off until she was just two minutes out.  

Kara would still be in bed, Lena had made sure she’d turned off Kara’s alarm when she tucked the letter into the pocket sewn into Kara’s suit.  

 

Lena just wanted this to end.  She wanted the endless terror felt by people like Kara to end, she needed it to end.  This was the only way, she’d convinced herself.  

She attached the micro-headset to her ear, and took the backpack from the trunk of her car.  The morning was still fresh, still gold, with the sun at just the right angle to obscure her from view as she set out on her first task.  

 

***

 

It was a terabyte hard drive.  Weeks of surveillance, weeks of paper trails, weeks of cybertrails, photographs, bank statements, all hand delivered by courier earlier that morning.  Winn was making his way through all of the information as quickly as he could, running four different programs to help him sort through each of the categories.  

Kara could see the panic in Winn’s eyes as his fingers danced across the keyboard, “Winn?”

 “Find Alex.  I can’t… I need to… Sorry Kara…”

Kara barely nodded, still unable to process the amount of activity flurrying around the department.  She’d barely been there five minutes when she heard Alex’s voice.

 “Kara?”

 “What’s going on, Alex?”  

 

Alex glanced around the room her face contorted with too many emotions for Kara to differentiate, “Lena’s gone after Cadmus.”

 

Kara dropped lightly onto the cement, her legs barely holding out.  Last night wasn’t a distraction at all, it was goodbye.  “Winn, where is she…?” her voice was low, no more than a whisper but still commanded the room.  

Winn shook his head, “I’m sorry Kara, but the amount of kryptonite I’m picking up on…”

She grasped for calm, drawing in a deep breath, willing herself not to scream in frustration or destroy the place, “I don’t care.  Tell me.”

 “Kara, no....” Alex was in front of her, “I know she’s your friend, but… She’s got a plan, clearly.  Lena’s smart…”

 “Alex incoming call!”

  
  


 “Winn?”  Lena tried to keep her voice strong, keeping her throat from closing up as she set the last charge.  “Is Kara there?”

She knew Kara would be.  Alex would have called her the second the package had arrived.  She was dreading this conversation.  Saying goodbye to Kara, after everything they’d been through, after _last night…_  

 

  _“Lena?”_

It was scarcely a whisper, uncertain, but it was Kara.

 

 “Kara?”

 

_“Come home.  Forget whatever stupid, stubborn plan you’ve made and come home…”_

 

She sighed, “I’m sorry Kara.”

 

She knew this was weakness.  She knew calling Kara was a sign that maybe she was second guessing herself.  Because she was.  She really was.  But there was no turning back now.  Lillian, Cyborg Superman, every other piece of filth that had pledged themselves to the cause were trapped inside.  All she had to do was flip the switch before they realised what was going on.  She knew it’d be quick.  The science never lied, and Lena had spent over a week trying and failing to create a plan that would have her back in Kara’s apartment, curled up under that hideous patchwork quilt.  

 

There were too many variables for Lena to take a chance.  Too many different people inside, too many chances that Lillian had a backup escape planned.  

 

There was too much kryptonite for Kara to be involved, and Lena knew that if she informed the DEO, Kara would stubbornly force herself onto the strike team.  She couldn’t lose Kara that way.... The world couldn’t lose Kara.  

 

Lena?  Lena was collateral damage.  

 

 “I’m expendable, Kara…”

 

There was a loud crack through the headset, probably the sound of Kara tossing something heavy _(a desk?)_ against a wall, _“Lena, you are NOT!  YOU are not expendable.”_

 

 “Kara, listen to me.  There is no time.  I’m going to end this call and this place is going to blow.  I just needed to hear your voice.”  

 

There was a scuffle over the line, Kara begging Alex to let her go, _begging_ Alex to remove the Kryptonite restraints that Lena had added to the package as an afterthought.   _“Lena!  Come home!”_

 

There it was again.   _Come home._  She knew what Kara was saying.   _Come back to me._

 

_I've looked death in the eye,_

_More than once._

_Held out my hand,_

_Ready._

 

Kara’s words from all those months ago, suddenly made a lot more sense as she stood there, waiting for the courage to settle in her chest.  

 

 “I love you, Kara.”

  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Sorry, not sorry xx
> 
> Come and scream at me on tumblr @thegrimllama


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